Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit English 1pk
by Microsoft Software
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Software Reviews of Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit English 1pk
Customer Review: Windows Vista Home Premium
Summary: 5 Stars
Great operating system. I use it for my home theater and plays and looks perfect on a 52" screen. Also, watch movies, Hulu, whatever. It looks and sounds great. Hook it up with a good receiver, video card, and you get digital magic. Vista did a good job!!!Customer Review: Vista 64-bit: No 16-bit programs, no unfettered kernel access
Summary: 5 Stars
Some notes about Vista in light of previous reviews: Programs more than five years old likely will not run on it.
-- Vista will not run 16-bit programs.
Any Vista -- 64-bit, 32-bit, Home, Business, Ultimate, etc. -- will NOT run 16-bit programs.
How do you know if a program you use is 16-bit? That's hard to say. If you got the program when you were running Windows 95/98, Windows ME or Windows 2000 / NT4, there's a good chance the program is 16-bit. If the program is more than four years old, some or all of a program's parts may be 16-bit.
Windows XP, Microsoft's first true 32-bit operating system, was capable of running 16-bit programs in compatibility mode. Therefore, it's the last Microsoft OS capable of running such programs.
-- Any Vista will run 32-bit programs. That constitutes the vast majority of software for sale over the last few years on store shelves / over the Internet. Anyone claiming a 32-bit Windows program will not run in 64-bit Vista is simply wrong.
There are rare occasions, namely when installing 32-bit DLLs from the command line, where Vista 64-bit installs require extra effort. The average computer user will never face this issue.
-- Vista does not allow unfettered access to the kernel.
Anyone who's used Windows 95 / 98 / ME is intimately familiar with the Blue Screen of Death. That was caused by software sending bad instructions to the kernel -- the core part of Windows. Mostly, it was caused by bad drivers (the mini-software that controls things such as printers, monitors, etc.).
Beginning in Vista, Microsoft no longer allowed just anyone to write software that talks directly to the kernel. Only select companies who have been given special permission can write such software.
This change means that some older software won't work, because it tries to talk directly to the kernel but doesn't have this special permission. That is actually a step forward for computer security, because it allows Microsoft to terminate bad software developers who make software that causes crashes.
Most of the people complaining here about Vista are having problems with running older software. It's akin to complaining that an automobile won't go, no matter how hard you hit it with a crop. The same way you can't hook a horse-drawn plow to a tractor and expect it to work, you can't install ancient software on Windows Vista and expect it to run.
That said, Vista 64-bit is a vast improvement over all previous Windows distributions. It is considerably more stable; the average home user may only need to restart the machine once a week.
Security, as previously noted, is vastly improved. The biggest change is user access control. That feature prevents software from installing itself or making significant changes to the system without your express permission -- which should help to significantly reduce the problem of worms, viruses and spyware.
The 64-bit software allows users to address more memory, and as more 64-bit software comes on line, you'll notice a significant increase in program performance (those of us who use 64-bit Photoshop have seen this first-hand).
No, you cannot run your copy of dBase III on Vista. Office 97 won't work, either. But any program you can buy off the shelf at any big-box retailer will run on it just fine ... no, better than fine; better than ever before.
Customer Review: Windows Vista Home Premium 64 Bit
Summary: 4 Stars
I have had the product installed for over a month now, and I have no complaints about the OS. The only issue that I have encountered is that not all of my old software plays nice with my new 64 bit OS as a result I wasn't able to reinstall all of my old apps. No problem I have since found alternatives for most, but still miss some. Fortunately I still have an XP machine in the house and can load the apps on that machine.Customer Review: Quirky but good on a high end laptop.
Summary: 3 Stars
Yes Vista Sucks we've known this since its inception. Well this version with the laptop i use runs quick but yes is still very quirky, but nothing that can't be rectified by a little patience. I have the ASUS, G50,(Republic of Gamers) laptop, with an Intel Centrino Duo 2, and 9800M Nvidia card and 4 gigs of RAM. Vista 64 runs very very fast with these specs, the main problem i seem to run into is that there is a lot, and i mean a lot of hang time installing certain programs, sometimes you really wanna just chuck it out the window, but if you wait it will be just fine. I've heard many stories of the operating system being unstable due to 3rd party software having new patches that they werent sure would work or not. Well lets just say most do, few don't. So running this on a high end machine like this is pretty much a breeze with just a few minor flaws. Do not and i repeat do NOT attempt to use Vista 64 with an AMD Turionx2 Processor, this is the bottom of the barrel AMD and quite frankly one of the most painstaking and sllloooww processes you will ever try to go through. I had an HP with a an AMD Turionx2 M-72 and wow it would barely even bring up windows without lagging or freezing, or just taking literally 10 seconds to do so. And mind you this was with 4 gigs of RAM and a low end decent ATI 3250 gcard. So if you go for this upgrade one advantage(if you really thing you need it) is that you can upgrade to 8 gigs of memory which in my min d is a bit overkill, but some may benefit from it. So yes it is better than Vista Premium 32 bit, as long as you have a high end machine with a great intel chip in it, steer clear of the AMDs for now, they have a LOT and i do mean a LOT of catching up to do with Utilizing Vista. Btw i have an early copy of Windows 7 and was not really that impressed, its just a fancy version of this with some new features(nothing special) and a little more system stability. I was hoping for something in a total new direction, so lets hope they tweak it to where is nothing like vista, but don't hold your breath. I'll stick with this one, ONLY because i have to, R.I.P XP you were the best along with 2000.:(Customer Review: VERY happy with this software!
Summary: 5 Stars
Having recently (Apr 09) built an Intel DX58SO (i7)-based system, I wanted to see full performance from day-1. All my historical software has been compatible with 32-bit Vista, and after reading a lot of (hate to use the term, but) whiney reviews about 64-bit Vista being incompatible with "all my important software" and "no drivers available" I still decided to dive into 64-bit Vista with the intent to upgrade to Windows-7 when it is released later in the year. An OEM version is highly restrictive, but it's not that difficult to anticipate needs and install all the necessary hardware prior to installing that version, especially in view of a highly praised upcoming new release, and an OEM version saves a significant amount of money. I like to keep in mind that it is NOT Microsoft's responsibility to write drivers for every peripheral in the world, it is the OEM's responsibility to write a driver for their product to provide compatibility with the reigning OS of the day, and to keep them upgraded as new OS hits the horizon!!!!
NO REGRETS!!
Pioneer CD/DVD DVR2920 ran without a hiccup. My four year old wireless Logitech keyboard & mouse worked from power-up. 64-bit drivers for my Canon iP6600D printer readily available. Likewise for an LiDE100 scanner and a CanoScan 9950F scanner (all tested, all working without problems)! The RAID controller on the Mobo set up flawlessly once the Intel drivers were installed.
Adobe Photoshop Express installed in 32-bit emulation mode and is running like a champ. Even dropping in a couple of fairly obscure plug-ins were no issue! Nero-9 installed in 32-bit emulation mode and is running like a rocket sled!! Plugging in a Sony DV camcorder received a nearly instant "installing drivers" pop-up and thereafter Nero was in control of the camcorder for DV downloads: smooth as silk.
Quicken-8, no problem.
I'll edit this review in the future (until Windows-7 is released) if I run into any problems, but so far this is a dream! I feel bad for all the nay-sayers, but I'm convinced a lot of folks have a real problem doing basic pre-purchase research and are unwilling to take personal responsibility for their own flawed decisions or assumptions.